I began writing for Forbes in 2010. It was just as the economy was starting to perk up and a fascinating time to cover the stock market, which I did for three months until I switched beats in September 2010. Now I contribute to the Leadership channel, with a focus on jobs and careers–-another hot topic in a time when people are vigorously hunting for jobs or desperately trying to hold on to the ones they have. I have a BA from the University of Arizona and a master's degree in journalism from Hofstra University. Follow me on Twitter @JacquelynVSmith, subscribe to me on Google+, or email me at jsmith [at] forbes [dot] com.

10 Things You Need To Do While You're Unemployed

If you’re unemployed and worried that employers will turn you down for taking on unimpressive work during the recession or for the large employment gaps on your résumé—you needn’t panic. A new survey just released by the careers website CareerBuilder.com reveals that the vast majority of employers are sympathetic to such circumstances.

The nationwide survey was conducted online by Harris Interactive, on behalf of CareerBuilder, among 3,023 hiring managers and human resource professionals between November 9 and December 5, 2011. Not only does it offer unemployed job seekers some hope, but it also provides tips to help them land a new position.

“More than 40% of unemployed job seekers have been out of work for six months or longer,” says Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources for CareerBuilder. “There’s a sense that such a long gap on a résumé negatively affects a candidate’s chances, but the survey shows that is not true. That’s very positive news for this group of job seekers. If you fill the gaps with activities and experience that illustrate how you are still developing your skill sets, the overwhelming majority of employers will look past your unemployment and focus on what you can bring to their team.”

Eighty-five percent of those surveyed employed reported that they are more understanding of employment gaps post-recession. Ninety-four percent said they wouldn’t have a lower opinion of a candidate who took on a position during the recession that was at a lower level than the one he or she had held previously.

But this doesn’t mean you can sit around and wait for a sympathetic employer to offer you work. “The worry is that employers may think job seekers are losing some of their skills because they haven’t been utilizing them. By volunteering, taking temporary work, or signing up for a class that develops your professional tool kit, you show employers that you’ve made the most of your time and will be ready on day one,” Haefner says.

Employers and CareerBuilder experts recommended a variety of activities you should engage in to build, expand, and strengthen your skills during period of unemployment, in order to increase your marketability.

Take a temporary or contract assignment.

Seventy-nine percent would recommend doing this. Why? “The key is to get people to see your work and to see what you’re capable of doing,” says Andy Teach, the author of From Graduation to Corporation: The Practical Guide to Climbing the Corporate Ladder One Rung at a Time. “If you do a great job, even if it’s for a temporary job, whoever hired you is more likely to recommend you for a permanent position.”

Take a class.

Sixty-one percent of the hiring managers surveyed recommended taking a class during a period of unemployment. “You never stop learning in your career, so the more technical competence you have, the better,” Teach says. “When you take a class in your field, you are also showing that you are serious about your work and that you take initiative.” Another advantage to taking a class: It’s a great networking opportunity.

Volunteer.

Sixty percent of the hiring managers said volunteer work makes you more marketable. “When you volunteer for something, you are telling potential employers something about you as a person,” Teach says. It shows that you are passionate about something and care about helping others—and it demonstrates that money isn’t the most important thing to you, he adds. “When companies are hiring, they are looking not only for people who can get the job done but also for people with character and integrity.”

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When it comes to unemployment it’s been a tale of two recessions, with level of education playing an unprecedented role in whether you’ve been pink slipped or not. Getting a degree from High Speed Universities is the only solution

“use your time to come up with ideas” – come on, give me a break. Monty Python did this so much better forty years ago, with instructions on how to rid the world of all known deseases: “first of all become a doctor and discover a marvelous cure for something. Then… you can jolly well tell them what to do and make sure they get everything right so there’ll never be any diseases ever again” Ideas need a framework and rigour, not time and vacancy. This is just a plug for CareerBuilder.

I am not one to comment on articles on a regular basis but this perfectly describes my situation. I was out of the country for a few years and was unable to work so I volunteered for 8 hours a day for the majority of the 3 1/2 years, gained a lot of skills but have been told by agencies that these skills are not valid because they were gained through volunteering. Once arriving back to my home town, I could not get administrative work so I settled in a retail position that had flex hours to accommodate part time evening studies at a local college. I have completed one certificate course and am near completion on a few others. When I have applied for administrative positions through agencies they are still focusing on my most recent position which is completely irrelevant to the direction I am going in. I do not get interviews in the areas that I have studied for as I have no past experience. My recent educational upgrades have made me overqualified for entry level positions and my past experience has left me outdated. I have been actively pursuing an administrative position for the past few years and wish those employers who are referred to in this article were in my neck of the woods. For those who lost work and retrained for a different area, or built their skill set to encompass a broader range of skills like myself, it is very difficult to find employment with the majority of employers out there looking for “the perfect fit” candidate because they are unwilling to give people with great potential a chance to shine.

Read the article and loved what it says, “Rely on yourself”. This is a new time and it requires a change in our thought pattern. All ten are great ways gain new experiences and to meet new people who that may be beneficial to our next employer. The new title for many HR personnel is Talent Acquisition Manager. So BECOME TALENTED. Quit moaning about why it is hard and realize you can overcome it.

Yes! Come up with new ideas. Maybe you can’t wipe out diseases but you can assist other to find employment. Start a networking group. Start a LinkedIn group, become a leader on a LinkedIn group. Volunteer at you place of worship or the community center these place need all the help they can gather. So you are planting vegetation in a planter. You do not know who is going to be there and see you working. How many CEO volunteer at Habitat for Humanity?

As someone who has been unemployed more than employed over the last five years. These steps work. If you think everything will fail then it will. Jacquelyn Smith has come up with a ten point plan that can assist you in gaining employment. Do not knock it until you have done all ten daily for at least a month.

If Jacquelyn forgot one thing it is to maintain a positive attitude. Because remember we see your attitude a before you say anything.

Please see MY post. I’m sure you will decide I am a negative, unemployable person – DESPITE that I and the majority of people in my 100+ mile radius area have been fighting to keep or find work for over four years now. You know when divorce attorneys start laying off that things are very, very bad. But, I have to say, one thing I learned in this is that my perspective was incorrect. I was too “Republican.” I was one of the lucky ones – albeit at 30K a year. What people without an education are doing – and how they’ve done it for over 10 years now – simply amazes me.

These are indeed 10 excellent points. I would actually expand in the point of ‘start a professional blog’ by actually ‘establish your presence on the Internet’: Indeed, while starting a professional blog is a very good idea, it may be rather challenging and demanding since a blog needs … some regular posts. Here is a number of items I believe they can bring the unemployed some ‘presence’: - Being active in other blogs is much easier - Focus on a specific problem and build a site, connect to all the relevant people who also try to solve this problem. We’ve built www.sostravelers.com/blog dealing with stranded travelers and social media. - Write some papers. People like to read ‘top 10 reasons…’ - Participate to the questions&answers of the various social networks like Linkedin - Build a page on Google + : do not forget that Google+ is … connected to Google so that you will be well positioned on Google :-) - Build up some great ‘business cards’ sites such as http://about.me/pscheimann - Purchase your family domain name whenever it is possible so that you can have an email address such as philippe@scheimann.org

In the end, when people will be googling you, they will see that you have established a presence, an identity that they can connect to.